Its my turn
by potters62442
Summary: We won the war against evil, but so many lives were lost. Friends, family, innocent people; no one deserved to die. What if someone upstairs realized their mistake and did the best they could to make things better. After all, everyone deserves a second chance. Don't they?
1. Is it really happening?

**A/N: Hi everyone. first of all I apologise for disappearing from fanfiction. But no worries I'm back and I'm most certainly going to finish this project. For all the new readers, I wanted to write a marauders reading the books series but copyright issues won't let me. So I've decided to give them a chance to alter their destinies in a different way. For all the returning readers, thank you so much for keeping up with me. I've missed you lot. And most importantly... Welcome Back :D**

James felt comfortable mattress beneath him. It was strange because he hadn't had such sensation for last 17 years. He was dead after all. At that fateful Halloween night James and Lily Potter were killed by Voldemort who was after their baby boy Harry. From that day onward Lily and James had been watching their son from above.

They watched as their son grew in a loveless household, they watched helplessly when Dursleys treated their boy like a slug. They watched when Sirius was sent to Azkaban for the crimes he never committed. And they watched when Remus broke down internally having lost his every single friend in a time span of 24 hours. They watched but couldn't do anything.

And then, after so many years, one day they welcomed their old friend Sirius in afterlife. hardly another year later they welcomed their mentor and headmaster Albus and when war was going on at full force, they welcomed too many other old friends and acquaintances. But now was the time for celebration. Harry had just defeated Voldemort by his own wand. Afterlife never felt any better. All the marauders were there, together, and everyone was celebrating the demise of one Lord Voldemort.

That was the last thing that James remembered. Now his eyes were closed and he could feel himself in a horizontal position. And was that a pillow under his head?

James opened his eyes. As normal as an action that was, it felt exceptionally strange to do something like that after 17 years of being dead. He blinked and looked around. That was definitely not the afterlife as he remembered. If anything, this place resembled his childhood bedroom. Same Gryffindor decoration, same giant four poster bed, same bedside table and his glasses.

He stretched his hand and fumbled for his glasses. He jumped out of his bed and looked around. This was definitely his childhood home. He could hear familiar voices from downstairs. Voice of his mum and dad chattering happily about something. But how was that even possible. He entered the bathroom in search of mirror and had a mini heart attack when he found one.

He was staring at the face of his younger self.

"That's some sick joke." He muttered and walked back in his room. He took the calendar from his bedside table and dropped it when he saw the date, 1 September 1971.

"What the-" He couldn't finish his sentence.

He looked around and found his brand new school trunk with initials J.P. , his desk was covered with brand new first year school books and his uniform robes were placed on the chair neatly folded, ready to be packed away.

If his memory served him correct and this was actually the world that he remembered then his wand must be in his cupboard. He opened his cupboard and found his loyal wand, waiting to be packed away with other stuff. He picked it up and it felt like greeting an old friend after years of separation.

"I missed you too." He murmured softly.

He sat on the edge of his bed, thinking about what was happening . Somehow, he was alive again and on top of that he had every memory of his life and afterlife. He had no idea if was feeling happy or sad. He just knew that he was back to life by some mismanagement of destiny. He couldn't help but think about his friends. There was not enough time to write letters, it was already September 1st. He would have to wait for a few hours to figure out whether his friends were also having a similar experience or if he was on his own. He shuddered at the thought of his friends not remembering the things that he remembered.

'Why not utilise the chance that I have been given.' He thought after few minutes of introspection.

With this thought he got up and waved his wand. His entire luggage flew and settled in his trunk in neat piles.

'I owe Lily so much for this spell.' He thought and let his thoughts wander off to Lily.

He was just finished with his magical packing when he heard a voice from downstairs.

"James wake up! It's time for breakfast dear."

He froze in his tracks. Of course he had met his mum and dad after his death but seeing them again alive and happy was going to be completely different.

He ran out of his room after carefully tucking his wand in the waistband his pyjama, he was never going to let go of his wand again. Last time it had cost him his life and Lily's too. If he had any say in this matter, nobody was going to die this time around.

"Slow down James, you will-" Mrs. Potter started, but rest of her words were silenced by a bone crushing hug that she got from James. Mr. Potter watched in fascination as James inhaled the scent of his mother like Oxygen. After few seconds Mrs. Potter broke the hug,

"What happened James?" She asked, sounding worried. James mentally kicked himself for worrying her.

"I am going to Hogwarts. I am excited." He said and then jumped on his father who chuckled fondly and wrapped his son in a bear hug.

"Ouch dad, can't breathe." He muttered as his dad ruffled his hair affectionately.

"Alright now sit down and eat something." Mrs. Potter said in a stern voice but her twinkling eyes gave her away. James felt so strange noticing for the first time how much his parents cared about him. Last time he was too naive to notice these little details.

'Of course you were naive. You were actually 11 years old last time.' A voice in his head reminded him.

His father immersed himself back in his newspaper as his mother poured pumpkin juice in his goblet.

"Dad, if you don't mind may I have a look at the newspaper?" He asked suddenly. Those were the days of rise of Voldemort. He was not out in public yet but one could always find the news about his activities if one knew what he was looking for. Last time James had never paid attention to this till it was too late.

His dad folded the paper and handed it to James, suddenly looking apprehensive. James scanned the newspaper while eating bacon. He found an article about one missing Muggleborn witch. Though there was no mention of death eaters or Voldemort, James immediately understood it was their doing. Her disappearance was eerily similar to Bertha Jorkins. His blood started boiling as he thought about how many families Voldemort had destroyed before being reduced to a lifeless shell.

"Son, are you alright?" Came the voice of worried Mr. Potter. James came out of his thoughts and realised that he was holding his piece of beacon close to his mouth and was staring at the newspaper like he was trying to burn it with his eyes.

"Yes I am fine." He said but when he looked at unconvinced faces of his parents, he added,

"I was reading about this _Muggleborn_ witch who disappeared. How did that happen?" giving emphasis on the word _Muggleborn_.

"Don't worry about it son. Either she will come back on her own or ministry will send someone to find her." His father said soothingly.

"Now put that paper down and finish your breakfast or you would be late for Hogwarts Express." Mrs. Potter said taking the paper from his hand.

Potter family finished their breakfast in silence which was a peculiar situation considering James was present. After breakfast James went back to his room to add some new stuff in his trunk which was not there the last time. He packed an entire Muggle first aid kit, healing potions, salves, some advanced defence books that he nicked from his dad's study. Then he realised he had no wand holster. Last time they had started using holsters after their 4th year, when keeping the wand within reach every single second of the day became essential, but this time he was not going to wait so long.

He called Mr. Potter to take his trunk downstairs. He could have easily levitated the trunk by himself but he let his father help him. After all, he was not supposed to be aware of even the incantation of levitation charm yet. He checked the cage of his owl Snowy and brought it too downstairs. Snowy was a beautiful snow white owl similar to Hedwig. Personally, James speculated that Hagrid would have thought of Snowy when he bought Hedwig for Harry.

He sat on the dining table downstairs, and made a short list of things he needed from Diagon Alley. He also made a mental note to owl order some complicated healing potions for Remus to help him with his werewolf injuries. Last time they had found these potions during their research about werewolves but it turned out to be useless as Remus could not afford these potions and he wouldn't let James and Sirius help him financially. This time he promised himself not to let his best mate act like a 'noble git', as Ginny sometimes called Harry. He gave the list to his mother and apologised for not remembering that stuff when they were shopping. He heard his father mutter,

"Is it just me or he really is acting strange?"

James smiled and got ready for his supposedly first ride of Hogwarts Express. He felt the familiar excitement and anticipation of going back to Hogwarts. Now the only thing left was to meet up with Lily, Sirius and Remus as soon as possible.

 **A/N: I'll try to update every weekend, so as to finish this story sooner rather than later. Please read and review and let me know what you think about this story :)**

 **-AS**


	2. Living the nightmare

**A/N: Alright, I know I promised to upload on weekends, but I had this one ready and couldn't wait till weekend. Don't incandio me for that please. Another important thing, I need a Beta. Alright fine, to put it honestly I desperately need a Beta if I'm planning to take this story anywhere in near future. If anyone is interested in helping me with this story, please PM me. And do let me know, what you think of this story. Your reviews are treasures for me and genuinely appreciated :)**

Sirius Black woke up with a start, his eyes blinking furiously and then resting on the hideous green canopy of his four poster bed. He was feeling a lot of things in that moment, but being dead was certainly not one of those.

He looked around and a horrible thought came to his mind,

'I'm back to Grimmauld Place!'

But this was not possible. After all he was dead. Wasn't he watching Lord snake faced Voldemort being defeated by his precious godson just a moment ago? Maybe he was having a nightmare. There was just one little problem, dead people can not have nightmares.

He sat up on his bed and looked around. To his absolute disgust, he realised that this place was indeed Grimmauld Place, his very own childhood bedroom. But something was not right. To begin with, this place was not decorated in red and gold, his Gryffindor colours. Instead everything was very Slytherin-ish green and silver. His posters of bikini clad models and Muggle motor bikes were also missing. And to top-off the weirdness of this situation, he was not dead anymore.

He hopped off from his bed and bolted to the bathroom at the end of the corridor. He shut the door behind him and inspected his face in the mirror. It took him every ounce of his Gryffindor bravery not to scream senselessly at what he saw there.

Gone was the gaunt face of a war ridden man who was aged beyond his years. This was the face of an innocent young boy in his preteens, with handsome aristocratic features, shiny black hair and mischievously twinkling grey eyes. Although at present moment, his eyes were too horror struck to twinkle.

"What in the name of Merlin's left sock is happening here?" he mumbled and flinched involuntarily at the sound of high pitched voice that came out of his mouth.

His brain was working at the speed of Hogwarts Express. Somehow, he was not dead anymore and on top of that he was also a midget...Again.

'Great, I'm not having a nightmare, I'm living in one.' He groaned internally.

Before he could reach any other conclusion, there was a knock on the bathroom door and he heard a croaky voice that he had always hated with a vigour.

"Mistress is requesting Master Sirius' presence for breakfast." the old house elf croaked. From the lack of muttered insults, Sirius concluded that this must have been before he was sorted in Gryffindor. Kreacher only started hating him after he rebelliously abandoned his traditional family house and it's values in favour of his new school house.

Sirius opened the bathroom door and looked at Kreacher, to his surprise there was only bone deep tiredness in place of immense hatred that he always housed for the slightly eccentric elf. He couldn't bring himself to hate the elf who took care of his godson and his friends.

"Kreacher, would you be kind enough to inform mother that I'll be downstairs shortly?" He said in a kind enough voice. Kreacher eyed him suspiciously then bowed his head and muttered,

"Kreacher will do as master Sirius says." With that he walked away.

Sirius was genuinely astonished by the calmness he was showing in this situation. His natural reaction should've been screaming hoarsely and throwing curses in every direction. But he was not 35 years old for nothing. He decided to calmly assess the situation and figure out what was happening before doing something recklessly Gryffindor.

He walked back to his room and picked up his wand from nightstand. Being the heir of Ancient and Noble house of Black and future lord Black, he was supposed to be efficient with simple spells and consistent with his wand long before he went to Hogwarts. He had this wand since he was nine years old and had no intention of letting it go from his hand anytime soon.

'Not when I'm certain that Bella is going to be around.' He muttered and cast a Tempus charm. It showed, 7:47 AM, 1st September 1971.

Sirius couldn't help the happy bubble inside him. He was going back to Hogwarts in few hours. Though he was still confused by his sudden rebirth, but it wouldn't be so bad if it means that he will get to see his friends again. And if those friends were back too, then all the better. And if not, then he pledged to personally ensure that none of them was going to die before being as old as Dumbledore.

He put on his wand holster, something he never bothered to do in his previous life, and tucked in his wand safely. After ensuring that his wand was ready to use with a flick of his hand, he braced himself and walked downstairs.

"Good morning Mother, good morning father." He greeted his parents and sat down for the breakfast. If his parents were surprised at his sudden display of manners, they didn't let it show on their face. Sirius realised that he didn't mind putting up with his parents as much as he would've otherwise. He would very much like to leave for Hogwarts in peace. A verbal sparring match with Walburga was more exhausting than he cared to admit.

Halfway through breakfast, Regulus entered the dining room, his face still showing some of the baby fat and his eyes were sleepy. He muttered a greeting to everyone and sat down in his chair.

No one noticed the congested expression on Sirius' face. He was positively torn between hexing his baby brother to oblivion for letting himself die and hugging him to death himself.

"Is there something wrong with your toast Sirius?" Walburga Black asked, her tone haughty as always but there was also a touch of worry for her elder son.

Sirius quickly rearranged his facial expressions not to look like he was choking on his food.

"Toast is alright mother, I was just thinking about Hogwarts." At least it was only a half lie, he thought to himself.

"I expect your luggage to be packed and you to be ready by 10:30, is that clear Sirius?" Orion Black spoke for the first time.

"Yes father, I'll be ready on time." Sirius replied and was about to excuse himself from table when Regulas spoke,

"Will you write to me Siri?"

"Of course Reggie, I will." Sirius replied hastily, his throat too tight to say anything else.

He wiped his mouth clean and excused himself to go pack his luggage. Once inside his room he flicked his wand and watched as his luggage folded itself neatly and books arranged themselves in a neat pile. He dug in his cupboard for some spare holsters and few healing potions. If he was going to be friends with Remus all over again, he might as well be prepared. He scrounged all the gold he could find and packed it away in a pouch.

Some of the healing potions for werewolf wounds were really expensive and he had no intention of letting Remus suffer from the pain of his transformations.

Now all that left was sit and wait patiently for his father to send Kreacher upstairs. Meanwhile he could think about his strange situation.

He needed to contact James and Remus as soon as possible and figure out if they were back to life as well. And just as a precautionary measure he needed to know about Pettigrew as well.

As much as he would've liked to, he knew he couldn't just pick up his wand and go on a killing spree. This was exactly what he did last time and it ended up being his downfall.

Then there was the matter of saving his little brother from his wannabe Deatheater relatives. He'd be damned if he fails to protect his own brother.

'Just wait till you meet all of them.' He kept reminding himself as a way of keeping himself grounded.

 **A/N: I know this a rather short chapter, but hey Sirius deserved a whole chapter to himself... Didn't he? Please read and review and let me know what you think about this story.**

 **And I need suggestions. Originally I planned to not make Snape a part of this team. But what do you guys think? Should I bring him back too? Do you think he'd be able to forgive the marauders and be friends with them? Share your views with me.**

 **-AS**


	3. Beyond the laws

**A/N: Hello readers, I'm back with another chapter. I hope you enjoy this one and thank you all for your reviews. Keep them coming. Your reviews are my motivation. Enjoy :)**

Remus Lupin was the last Marauder to die, but that didn't mean he was any less familiar with the sensation of being dead than his other friends. So he could immediately tell, something was off.

His heightened werewolf senses were picking up smells that shouldn't have been there. Smell of jasmine and fresh tea leaves that he always associated with his mother, his mother who had been dead for last 15 years.

His eyes snapped open and he looked around frantically. There was no mistake in recognising the modest room decorated in pale blue. It was his room from when he was a kid. He hadn't stepped a toe in this room since he had graduated from Hogwarts.

He was clearly alive, but how and why? And where was Dora? He needed to find her. If, by some miracle, they were really alive then Teddy wouldn't have to grow up as an orphan. He immediately skipped from his bed and suddenly felt very off balance.

Was he a bit smaller than usual?

His confusion turned into horror when he looked down at himself. He was tiny, as tiny as he was when he first joined Hogwarts.

His childhood bedroom, combined with his appearance and murmur of conversation from kitchen downstairs, was making the logical part of his brain to catch up with what his gut instinct was shouting at him. But he was, by no means, ready to accept that he was alive again in his preteen body.

This entire situation was against so many natural laws, it made his head spun if he thought about it too hard. He looked around for a calendar and found the one on his bedside table. 1st September 1971, it said. The only reason he didn't lose his hold on consciousness right there and then was, because he had become too habitual to deal with stressful situations. Handling a very pregnant Dora had its own perks.

He looked for his wand and as expected it was packed neatly and with care in the box from Ollivanders, just like the treasure that it was. Or at least it used to feel like a borrowed treasure the first time around. Of course he still loved his wand but he didn't feel unworthy of it anymore.

'Being dead does wonders to one's perception.' he mused silently.

Being the most logical and levelheaded marauder, his next course of action was to think about his situation and the possible consequences of his 'rebirth', if it could be called that.

He was lost deep in thoughts, when his concentration was broken by the sound of footsteps on the stairs. He looked up and saw the beautiful face of his mother who was smiling lovingly at her 11 year old son.

His heart skipped a beat when he saw her. Hope Lupin was a beautiful woman. Remus got his most prominent features from his mother. But instead of the auburn hair of his mother, he got sandy blond of his father, Lyall Lupin.

He jumped up and hugged his mother tightly. Mrs. Lupin responded immediately, mistaking his emotions for his nervousness to go to Hogwarts. Remus broke the hug after a good 40 seconds of inhaling her scent. His mother ruffled his hair affectionately and told him to come downstairs for breakfast.

Remus didn't trust himself enough to speak yet, so he nodded in acknowledgement. Once his mother had vacated the room, he sternly told himself to get a grip over his emotions. It wouldn't do him any good if he was left a sobbing mess on the floor.

He pocketed his wand and made a mental note to owl order himself a wand holster. This wand was no treasured toy of a child, it was a weapon and it will be treated as such. Remus sighed internally. Last time, it had taken an attack on Sirius from Slythrins in their 4th year, numerous disappearances and few cold blooded murders for that realisation to sink in.

He descended the stairs and entered the kitchen. It was filled with familiar delicious smell of English breakfast, his father's personal favourite. Lyall Lupin smiled at his son and Remus found himself incapable of speech, again. He gave his father a strained smile and sat down for breakfast.

Halfway through the breakfast he noticed his parents were having a silent conversation and he almost groaned out loud, here comes 'the werewolf talk'. How could he have forgotten about that.

Every year, before Remus boarded the Hogwarts Express, his father gave him a talk. Basically it consisted of a brief description of what would happen to him and his family if he bit anyone even by mistake. Mr. Lupin never spoke any unkind word to his son but Remus thought that this conversation did him more harm in the long run than the bite itself.

He listened as his father talked, nodding along at all the right places. He listened solemnly, noticing for the first time how scared Mr. Lupin really was. No wonder he died before his time.

After thoroughly reassuring his father and doing the best he could to calm his worries, something he never did in his previous life, he finished his breakfast. He wolfed down everything on his plate. He missed his mum's cooking. Hope Lupin was no Molly Weasley, but she was a good enough cook.

Since his trunk was already packed, he decided to help his mother with household chores till it was time to get ready for the train.

Once he fell in the familiar rhythm of pruning rose bushes, he started thinking about his situation again. The more he thought about, more he became sure that this was no ordinary time travel. It was theoretically impossible to create such a massive time ripple. There was a reason that even the strongest time turners could not go back more than 24 hours in time.

His scholar mind yearned to have a conversation about Time Theory and discuss the effects of his rebirth on space-time continuum with McGonagal and Dumbledore, but he was not stupid enough to just barge in their office and babble about everything.

He was given a chance, he will have to be careful about how he uses it.

'More than one innocent life may be spared.' He remembered what headmaster had told Hermione in her 3rd year.

But first of all he needed to contact his friends. He wouldn't be able to do this on his own. He needed them desperately.

In a suburban household of Cokeworth, a red headed 11 year old girl was having similar realisations as Remus Lupin.

Lily Evans was as clever as Hermione Granger. But even with all her smartness, she was still having troubles to come to terms with her current situation.

Just a moment ago she was Lily Potter, dead mother of The-Boy-Who-Lived. And now, she was looking at her cute baby face in the mirror, her trunk packed neatly by her bed, with all her Hogwarts things and she was ready to board Hogwarts Express in few hours.

Breakfast was an awkward affair in Evans household this morning. It took her massive effort to not throttle Petunia at breakfast table. Lily wanted to lock her elder sister in a cupboard just like Petunia locked Harry. But she knew, it wouldn't do her any good.

'Vengeance can wait, right now I need James.' She reminded herself. Her parents were baffled at the sudden odd behaviour of their younger daughter. Usually Lily tried to do her best to keep the peace between her and Tuney. It was strange to see Lily refusing to make eye contact with Petunia. Petunia occasionally shot daggers from her eyes in Lily's direction but didn't say anything.

Thought of James filled her with dread. If he wasn't back, she would have to deal with his insufferable attitude all over again. Last time it took him 6 years and few choice curses from her to grow up and deflate his head a bit. She prayed to whoever was listening to give her the patience. Then there was the matter of Snape. She would've to meet him at station and she was dreading it.

Lily wanted to both kiss him for protecting Harry and smack him for the way he bullied children. She knew Severus would sense the difference in her attitude. It would be a pain to keep her little secret from Sev. Severus was a true Slytherin, too cunning and observant for his own good.

On the other hand, if James was back too, maybe she could convince him to be friends with Sev, or at least to leave him alone.

'What would you do if Sev is back? Would you be able to handle his love and obsession for you?' A sly voice in her head asked. Lily refused to think about it.

'It would be cruel to bring Severus back. Fate can not keep making a joke out of his life. If anyone deserves to start a life with clean slate that's him.' She tried to reassure herself. This was the only thing she could do, till she saw others.

 **A/N: Based on the opinion of my friends and your reviews, I've finalised the fate of one Severus Snape. You'll have to wait another week to find out what it is * evil laughter in the background *.**

 **Please, please, please leave your comments on my story. And let me know, if anyone is interested in helping me with this story. I love you all.**

 **-AS**


	4. The Reunion

**A/N: Here's another chapter, an early treat. I won't post another on weekend. I'm forever thankful to all the readers and reviewers. Your opinion helps me refine the story, so keep it coming. I'm working on this story as best as I can. If there are grammar mistakes, please forgive me. English is not my first language, but I'm trying hard to read and reread the chapters before posting. Please read and enjoy. :)**

Lily had always been among the early comers to board Hogwarts Express, this time was no different. Last time she had spent her entire time pleading with her sister but this time Lily barely even looked at her. Instead, she looked for her friends. She knew that James and Sirius were among the latecomers so she wasn't expecting to see them for at least another half hour but Remus must be here somewhere and it was time to meet Severus too.

Lily had a plan in mind for Remus. She wanted to discuss with him some of the theories she had in her mind regarding their sudden rebirth. But if he wasn't back like her, she would drag him as far away from Peter as possible. The least she could do was to ensure that Marauders were not friends with Peter this time.

Her mind still came up with a blank whenever she thought about Severus. She needed to find him too and fast. She dragged her trolley all the way to back end of the train, her parents followed her in awe. They had never seen so many owls, cats and toads together.

She loaded her trunk in the train with the help of her father. She hugged her mother tight and promised to write her with the news of her sorting, she made a mental note to write home more often than she did last time. She said an indifferent goodbye to her sister who was, by now, thoroughly confused by Lily's behaviour.

After waving her parents on, she looked around for Severus and found him in the exact same spot where she was expecting him. He was saying Goodbye to his mother. His father was nowhere to be seen. He was dressed in same shabby and too large for him clothes as ever and as usual his face betrayed nothing. Lily could not tell if he was back or not.

After a minute or two, he finally looked at Lily and nodded in acknowledgement. As soon as his mother disapparated from the platform, he made his way towards Lily. His luggage was already loaded somewhere else.

He came close to her and looked around for eavesdroppers. Lily felt her heart sinking. Up until this moment she hadn't realised how much she didn't want Severus to be reborn. But judging from his behaviour, it was clear that he too was back.

Severus leaned forward and spoke in an urgent whisper,

"You didn't tell your sister about the letter, did you?"

For a moment Lily was so relieved she couldn't form a coherent response. Sev was asking about Dumbledore's letter. The one in which Dumbledore politely declined Petunia's request to join Hogwarts. To her, it was an event that happened a lifetime ago. But for Severus, it was just a fortnight ago. He wasn't back. She thanked Merlin for that. Severus deserved a better life. Lily vowed to ensure that he got one. Severus was still waiting for her response, so she collected herself and told him she didn't. Severus sighed in relief and told Lily that he'd meet her soon.

Lily watched him walk away, no doubt to get rid of his hand-me-downs. She felt like a weight had been lifted off of her chest. This was the kind and caring boy who had been her friend not the bitter and angry man who had an unhealthy obsession with her. She smiled to herself and decided to explore the station. She needed to find Remus, before Remus found Peter. She shuddered at the thought of Peter being brother to her friends again.

She spotted Lupin family right next to the entrance barrier. She ran towards the small family and ran straight into Remus, making both of them crash on the floor.

Before anyone could say anything, she started babbling,

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't see where I was going. I didn't mean to..."

"It's alright sweetheart." Hope Lupin said in a kind voice, offering her hand to Lily to help her up. Remus was also being helped up on his feet by his father. He looked at Lily and narrowed his eyes. Lily couldn't help the small and mischievous smile that spread on her lips.

"I hope I didn't hurt you, I'm Lily Evans by the way." She said, offering her hand to Remus.

Lyall and Hope exchanged anxious glance at her gesture. They knew how much Remus shied away from physical contact. Hence, it was safe to say that they were pleasantly surprised when Remus shook her hand and replied in a pleasant voice,

"No you didn't, it was just a bump. I'm Remus Lupin."

"First year?" Hope Lupin asked.

"Yes ma'am." Lily replied politely. She had always been fond of Mrs. Lupin.

"Where is your luggage?" Remus asked Lily.

"In the last compartment. Would you like to join?" She asked and they exchanged a knowing glance. It was the same compartment where they'd sat all those years ago.

Remus started dragging his trolley to where Lily had pointed. Lily walked beside him, happily chatting about sorting process. Mr. And Mrs. Lupin looked really happy that Remus was getting along with her so well.

After his luggage was loaded and Goodbyes were said, Lily and Remus finally shut the door of their compartment.

"Lily, I-" Before Remus could say anything, his words were cut off by a bone crushing hug from Lily. She had her arms wrapped around him and let out a sound that was a cross between laughter and sob.

Remus soothingly pat her. He remembered all the days he spent calming her down from her mood swings when she was pregnant. James worshipped the ground that Lily walked on but he had a tendency to irritate her instead of cooling her down. Sirius was useless in handling pregnant women, so the responsibility was given to Remus.

When she finally calmed down enough, she untangled herself from Remus and looked at him teary eyed,

"I was so scared that I'll have to deal with everything on my own." She told him.

"I know Lily, I was also terrified." Remus admitted.

"James, or Sirius?" He asked her.

"I haven't met them yet but now I'm confident they're also back. What about Pettigrew?" Lily asked.

"I haven't met him yet, but we can easily figure out if he's back or not. You want to wait for James and Sirius?" He asked.

"Yes, let's wait for them. If that rat is also back, I don't fancy confronting him on my own." Lily replied and settled on the window seat.

They were soon engrossed in a long winding conversation about the impact of their return on space-time. They were so focused that neither of them noticed the compartment door open.

JLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSRJLSR

On their way to King's Cross station, James started thinking about certain issues. One Peter Pettigrew being the biggest of his concerns. Last time he trusted Peter with the life of his entire family. This time he didn't even know how he was going to let the rat live even for a hour.

He checked his watch and realised that in half hour he was going to meet Lily. He remembered sharing his compartment with Lily last time. It was not a pleasant experience at all. She was upset because of a row she had had with her sister, and James being a git that he was at the age of 11, set her off further.

As they entered the platform he couldn't help but feel really excited when he saw the red steam engine of his all time favourite train.

James looked around, searching for either Remus or Sirius. Near the end of the train, he noticed Sirius having a strained conversation with his mother. Mrs. Black was saying something in a hurried manner and Sirius was nodding along.

Suddenly, as if sensing the eyes watching him, Sirius looked up and noticed James. Both of them were frozen for a second and then Sirius winked. James felt like his heart stopped beating. He stopped dead in his tracks and continued staring at his best friend. Sirius gave him a hint of smile and winked again. James had no words to explain how he was feeling at that moment. This was Sirius, his old friend Sirius, his Padfoot.

James was extremely happy and disappointed at the same time. He was happy that he was not in this situation all alone, but at the same time he wanted a peaceful life for his friend. James came out of his thoughts when Mrs. Potter called for him. He looked at Sirius for the last time, nodded slightly then walked off with his parents.

He loaded his luggage on the same compartment where he was certain to meet Lily, but meeting her could wait for few more minutes. He jumped off the train to say goodbye to his parents. His mum hugged him and to her immense pleasure and surprise, in place of shying away, he hugged her back. When they parted James slowly whispered in her ears,

"I love you mum."

"Love you too James. Be dear and write to me as frequently as you can."

He nodded and hugged his dad and whispered the same thing to him. After he had said his goodbyes, he climbed back in the train and with a last glance towards his, braced himself for whatever was coming for him.

 **A/N: So yeah, I've decided to not bring Severus back. There's too much bad blood between old Severus and boys.**

 **For all those who are angry with me that I gave Remus the tears and hug welcome from Lily(the one that James deserves), well I've always imagined Lily thought of Remus as a brother she never had. Besides James will get his own moments with Lily. Though I won't be featuring romance anytime soon. There're too young for that and there's so much else to do. I'm sure they'll have plenty of time for romance later.**

 **Please review my work and let me know what I can do to make this story better. If anyone is interested in helping me with this story, please PM me. And REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW. I love you all :D**

 **-AS**


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